It’s time for common sense, not a spectacle

IN the real world, outside the Westminster bubble (inflated by some gigantic egos), the seemingly never- ending Brexit pantomime must leave people aghast.

Motions and amendments here. Humble addresses there. The ordinary person must stare at the spectacle and shake their heads in weary dismay.

For as the courageous and indefatigable Prime Minister toils to get her hard-fought deal through a febrile Parliament, the long drawn out process is hitting business – jeopardising livelihoods.

Britain’s crucial services sector – the powerhouse of the economy – has slowed sharply amid uncertainty. Meanwhile, car sales slumped again – down 3 per cent.

Firms are suffering Brexit fatigue, warning that unpredictability is hampering their ability to plan ahead – affecting people’s jobs, incomes and mortgages. Now, surely, is the time for a healthy dose of reality.

We accept Theresa May’s deal is not blemish-free. Fears the EU will lock Britain in the Irish ‘backstop’ indefinitely are real. The PM must use all her persuasive powers to tease extra concessions from Brussels.

But the agreement halts free movement and huge payments to Brussels, while allowing a smooth exit that avoids triggering the economic turmoil of no deal.

To focus minds, a Mail poll today shows most people – by 40 per cent to 30 – believe MPs should back Mrs May, on the basis we are not going to get a better deal. So it is imperative that self-indulgent Tories realise they are drinking in the last chance saloon.

Hardline Leavers must not let the purist search for a perfect Brexit blind them to a decent one. That would risk letting all hope of leaving the EU slip from their grasp.

Meanwhile, Remainer colleagues who want to torpedo Brexit must also face hard truths. A majority voted to leave the EU. So Brexit must mean Brexit.

It would be intolerable if Parliament did not honour the referendum result, destroying the faith of millions of people already cynical about politics.

If both sides end up in a diabolical alliance with Labour and the SNP – who are only interested in forcing a general election – Mrs May will suffer a crushing defeat.

She then risks being replaced in Downing Street with the Marxist nightmare of Jeremy Corbyn and Nicola Sturgeon.

Are the Tories really ready to risk a coalition that would destroy the economy, the Union and everything they hold dear?

It is time for the party to come to its senses and avoid the urge to land a free hit on Mrs May. It is time for wise heads and sensible solutions.